


Hopelessly Devoted

by loverbouquet



Category: Fire Emblem Heroes, Fire Emblem Series
Genre: Brother-Sister Relationships, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-11
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-17 20:20:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,307
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29356356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loverbouquet/pseuds/loverbouquet
Summary: Sharena knows her place within the royal family, but even she can’t believe she was left out of the Day of Devotion.
Relationships: Alfonse & Sharon | Sharena, Líf & Sharon | Sharena
Comments: 8
Kudos: 35





	Hopelessly Devoted

**Author's Note:**

> Sharena has always deserved so much better from IntSys, and her not being on the newest valentine banner just makes it even more apparent. *sigh* step the fuck up and give her some damn love IntSys

It didn’t seem fair.

The Day of Devotion had always been considered a festival for families. Why didn’t she get to attend with her own?

Sharena found herself pacing around the castle’s courtyard shortly after her parents and brother left for the event, these thoughts burned deep into mind. She did love Alfonse, and not just because he was blood and she had to. She did genuinely care for him, but it had always been clear as day to her that between the two of them, he was the favorite. Even so, she never expected to be left out of a family gathering that would have them in the spotlight.

Surely people would ask questions once they realized she wasn’t there. How would they answer? The king would likely be dismissive of anything regarding it, prioritizing keeping up appearances more than anything. Her mother probably wishes she was there, but as queen, she is still expected to go along with whatever it is Gustav says and does. Her brother would be the most worried about her and how being excluded would affect her, but even then, he would still have to be attentive to the general public in the moment.

She had a beautiful outfit picked out and everything. It truly wasn’t fair.

As many friends as she had made in the Order, and as grateful as she was for all of them, it still cut deep to feel like she was nothing more than an afterthought to her father, and that there wasn’t much her mother and brother could do about it. Witnessing all the familial relationships within the Order, she knew it wasn’t supposed to be like this. Yet it didn’t change the fact that that’s how it was for her.

Her throat ached and her eyes began to sting. Gods, no, she really did not want to cry. What would that solve? Gustav would just chastise her and then continue to ignore her. Come to think of it, if she knew how he was with her, why was she even worried about how he’d react?

But that didn’t make her feel any better. If anything, the thought of not caring was even more painful. As soon as those first tears fell from her eyes, many more were close behind, and the princess cursed herself for being unable to maintain her composure. Her hands trembled over her face as she unsuccessfully tried to choke back sobs. She found herself on her knees as she lost herself in her own overflowing emotions.

Did she do something to make him like this? Was there anything she could do to remedy things? Would he even notice her efforts? If he were to notice, would he even APPRECIATE her efforts? In a sense, she already knew the answer to all of these questions. However, that answer was too upsetting to admit out loud. Tears continued to fall from her eyes, some flowing down her face and others dripping onto her hands. She wasn’t entirely sure how long she sat in the courtyard like this, but it was long enough for her to be oblivious to her surroundings.

Including the two pairs of footsteps entering. It wasn’t until she felt a hand on her shoulder that she looked up, too overcome by her other emotions to be startled by it. Who the hand belonged to, and who that person was accompanied by, however, was another story entirely.

“Shouldn’t you be at… be at the festival?” She stammered upon standing in front of the person before her.

“I was able to sneak away with the help of Lif.” Her brother confessed, glancing back at the masked blue haired man behind him. It appeared that he had dressed up for the occasion as well, a white cloth with a golden trim over his face and a similar robe took the place of his usual armor. She found it surprising, as such an event seemed to be in stark contrast to his typical demeanor.

“But why?” She questioned the prince, turning her attention back to him. “You should be there for our people, and for—“

“Not without you.” Alfonse cut her off, feeling bad for doing so but needing her to know what he really thought. “If it upsets father, then so be it. It was wrong of him to leave you out to begin with. I have no interest in attending these festivals—in having to appeal to him— if you're not there too.”

Sharena’s eyes began to well up once more, but this time out of joy. To know he cared about her enough to leave an event simply because she wasn’t there… it reminded her of how great of a brother she had. She tightly wrapped her arms around him, her chin resting on his shoulder and leaving it damp from her tears. He didn’t mind, as long as he knew she was comforted. Alfonse quickly returned her embrace, gently rubbing her back with his thumb.

Lif began to approach the siblings, watching as they let go of each other and turned their heads to face him at the sound of his footsteps. Looking at this world’s Sharena, he was reminded of the one from his own. How her eyes would also light up at the chance to attend a festival. How her own excitement made him look forward to it as well. How indescribable the pain of her being taken away was for him. He would stop at nothing if it meant having his sister back, and it hurt even more to know that this Sharena might not feel that love from the people that she should.

“Lif? Is everything okay?”

His train of thought was interrupted by her question, watching her tilt her head in concern. That same concern his Sharena would often show him when he would become lost in his own mind. Another reminder of the past and how cruel it was to him. He looked down in shame of his failure to protect her, catching a glimpse of the flowers in his hands and remembering why he accompanied Alfonse in the first place.

“For you.” He murmured, holding out the vase to her while keeping his gaze on the ground.

“Oh, they’re beautiful… thank you.” He heard her respond as she accepted the gift.

Now that he had done that, he didn’t see much reason to stick around. This wasn’t his world, this wasn’t his sister. He heard her express her gratitude, but he didn’t give himself a chance to see her with the flowers as he turned away, starting to walk out of the courtyard.

That is, until he felt someone grab his arm.

“Wait!” Sharena pleaded with him. He still wouldn’t look up at her, but he did turn back to face her. Even in a world entirely separate from his own, he couldn’t tell her no.

It was only when he felt her arms around him that he took his eyes off the ground. A strange warmth filled his heart at the gesture, something he didn’t think was possible with him anymore. He glanced over at the prince with widened eyes, and watched as he simply nodded in response. With that, he also wrapped his arms around the princess, albeit with a hint of hesitation.

His eyes burned slightly, and when he blinked in an attempt to make it go away, he felt something wet sliding down his cheeks. Tears of his own. He believed he stopped being capable of producing tears a long time ago, but the kindness Sharena had shown him proved otherwise. His mask didn’t show it, but he was smiling too. While this might not have been his Askr and his Sharena, to know she still cared for him like he was her brother was enough for him.


End file.
